Sources: The Transitional Council in Niger Willing to Release Bazoum in Exchange for Lifting Sanctions

Sources have reported that the transitional council in Niger is prepared to release ousted President Mohamed Bazoum in exchange for lifting sanctions imposed on the country by ECOWAS. Close sources to the council indicated that at the end of negotiations with an ECOWAS delegation, along with discussions held with a United Nations team, the council expressed its readiness to release the ousted President Bazoum in exchange for lifting the sanctions imposed by the ECOWAS group. The United Nations mission had requested the military council to engage in dialogue with the Economic Community of West African States and to keep the door open for discussions before the mission left for Niamey. The UN made the same request to the African Union to reach a solution to the crisis. It is noteworthy that the military council in Niger seized power on the 26th of last month, with the former head of the presidential guard, General Omar Abdel Rahman Tiani, justifying the ousting of President Bazoum on the grounds of his failures in security, economics, and social issues in a country among the poorest in the world, which suffers from the activities of armed groups. Earlier, the military council threatened to bring Bazoum to trial on charges of "high treason" and "undermining the security" of the country in the event that neighboring countries intervened militarily.